Engineers Without Borders - CMU El Salvador Bridge Project
THE NEED
Has water ever kept you from going to school or from receiving medicine when you are urgently in need of medical assistance? Has a flood ever cut off your community’s source of income or prevented you from being able to buy food for your family?
SETTING THE SCENE
The community of GualindoArriba is located near a river in the jungle-like terrain of El Salvador. The river floods significantly in the frequent rainstorms that come with a tropical climate, and the people of GualindoArriba are virtually cut off from the outside world including their product stockers, markets, customers, schools, and healthcare providers after a single storm.
A SOLUTION ON THE WAY
To compensate for this lack of available access, the EWB-USA Central Michigan University Student Chapter has committed to building a culvert for the community of GualindoArriba to have a reliable access point to the surrounding communities, even when it rains.
IMPLEMENTATION PHASES
After an assessment trip in August 2009, a design was created for a box culvert. The box culvert is a cost-efficient design, which is also stable and reliable, and is equipped to withstand high flooding conditions while allowing open access for travelers. After community approval of the box culvert in August of 2010, the first project implementation trip was taken in January of 2011.
Has water ever kept you from going to school or from receiving medicine when you are urgently in need of medical assistance? Has a flood ever cut off your community’s source of income or prevented you from being able to buy food for your family?
SETTING THE SCENE
The community of GualindoArriba is located near a river in the jungle-like terrain of El Salvador. The river floods significantly in the frequent rainstorms that come with a tropical climate, and the people of GualindoArriba are virtually cut off from the outside world including their product stockers, markets, customers, schools, and healthcare providers after a single storm.
A SOLUTION ON THE WAY
To compensate for this lack of available access, the EWB-USA Central Michigan University Student Chapter has committed to building a culvert for the community of GualindoArriba to have a reliable access point to the surrounding communities, even when it rains.
IMPLEMENTATION PHASES
After an assessment trip in August 2009, a design was created for a box culvert. The box culvert is a cost-efficient design, which is also stable and reliable, and is equipped to withstand high flooding conditions while allowing open access for travelers. After community approval of the box culvert in August of 2010, the first project implementation trip was taken in January of 2011.
My Involvement
I have been a member of EWB-CMU for 4 years and Vice President for 3 and a half of those 4 years. My involvement consisted of fundraising, grant writing, and other tasks to help get the chapter started.
In January of 2011, I spent a week in El Salvador helping start the first implementation phase.
In January of 2011, I spent a week in El Salvador helping start the first implementation phase.
Chapter Recognition
EWB-Central Michigan University's El Salvador Bridge Project was awarded the Premier Project Award at the EWB International Conference in 2011.